Towards the transformation of Owndays
We have seen many companies of our father's generation approach bankruptcy. But the next generation helped transform the brand until it became successful and where it is today. But Tanaka's case is considered close. But the difference is that he is an outsider. Not a family member
A turning point in life has finally arrived for Tanaka. When he learned of an eyewear retailer called Owndays that had been around since 1989, he was looking for investors to “take over” the business from its previous owners.
The concern is that although Owndays' sales are estimated at billions of yen annually, that is not its net profit. It comes with a multi-billion yen debt load as well. Investors estimate that there is a high probability that the company is close to bankruptcy. Until it was well said in the industry that “it will definitely fail”, no investor dared to take the risk. No businessman wants to buy it and continue building it.
Why choose Ondays?
From a business perspective, Tanaka saw that the Japanese eyewear industry at that time did not have a market leader seriously dominating the market. It is not like other big companies that have skilled workers and professional working system. And premium products and services such as the coffee business – there is Starbucks, the clothing business – there is ZARA
But the Japanese eyewear market at that time felt that there was still no market leader in terms of volume. The system is strong and the quality of products and services is good enough even though I was not involved in the eyewear industry at first. But he himself was an adventurous man. It can take high risks. It can take a lot of volatile pressures… as has been the case my whole life. Since he did not study at university, he went out and did business here and there and struggled.
Others may have walked away and thought they were doomed to fail, but he did the opposite with his decision. 'acquisition' In 2008, before the entire structure was dismantled and a new foundation was laid!
The problem is the opportunity
Previously, Tanaka himself had visited an optical shop in the market. I faced a pain point from a consumer perspective: calculating the price of the glasses, which seemed complicated. It doesn't look transparent. Because the starting price is not much but add more here and there until the price escalates beyond what was originally budgeted.
He solved this problem perfectly when he created the Owndays brand.
First, Tanaka knows his weaknesses. So he appoints the right people to the right jobs. By having the previous owner take care of all the company's finances, such as negotiating debts with the bank. He consulted investors and is fully focused on the business. By crystallizing the brand's new foundation for doing business in three keywords: fast service, easy-to-understand prices, and value.
In terms of doing business brand marketing Tanaka realized that he had to find a unique and clear selling point. The most precise and measurable clarity comes when we use numbers, making fast service its foundation.
'20 minutes' It has become a magic number that has become the selling point of the brand. Tanaka wants to deliver one completed pair of glasses to a customer within 20 minutes, meaning that if a customer walks into the store and sees a pair of glasses they like and decides to get them, it's all steps from there, such as optometry. Glasses lens parts check the status until the product is delivered to the customer within 20 minutes.
Tanaka believes it's like “giving people a whole new world” in just 20 minutes, and that's no exaggeration. Because when people look through “new lenses,” the whole world changes and is no longer the same. In other words, from the client's perspective, it was those next 20 minutes that changed his life forever.
Value that can be felt
Tanaka bids farewell to pricing complications by combining complete “eyeglasses frames + lenses” pricing into one price. This was different from other eyewear stores of that era where they were sold at separate prices. The price is clearly posted on each pair of glasses. If there are additional options, it clearly states the additional amount the customer has to pay. And what did you get?
Since the last era Tanaka understands that. When a customer comes to choose glasses in the store he is not just looking for functionality. Once you have completed your purchase, simply return. But everyone is also looking for a good “experience” around them when they are in the store. This has been translated into “store décor” that is bright, simple, warm and inviting to walk in and spend a long time in.
The height of glasses on the shelf and the appropriate placement angle by measuring the average height of the majority of customers who come to use the service. Including the design of mirrors throughout the store and the clarity, cleanliness or depth of the mirrors which makes customers feel “good” when wearing glasses.
As for products, Owndays offers high-quality lenses at affordable prices and has over 1,500 designs to choose from, ranging from simple, elegant, vintage, modern and business-friendly. But the eyewear business differs from other businesses in that the added value comes not only from the eyeglasses themselves, but from “employee services.”
All Owndays employees, in addition to knowledge in optometry, regarding vision and processing of the human visual system, are also trained in the love of service. Understand different customer groups and their different problems
Successful business model
All this is aimed at establishing a strong business foundation (get the basic right) that differs from the market.
Next is business expansion. As previously mentioned, Tanaka has analyzed other corporate giants and drawn lessons from their success, such as Uniqlo, a leading Japanese clothing brand that has achieved global success, using the “SPA system” (Specialty Retailer of Private Label Apparel) as a system through which brands can… They carry out business activities on their own in a fully integrated manner. From the beginning, finding the raw materials, designing, producing, and shipping all the way to the storefront to the end customer.
Tanaka introduced a SPA system to Owndays, which is rarely used in other optical stores because it is difficult to manage. All eyewear is Owndays' own brand and uses lenses produced in collaboration with partners who have full control over production quality.
SPA system is also an important mechanism for brands to expand their business while maintaining the same high quality and constantly answering 3 keywords, such as low cost control. Therefore, the price of including frames and lenses is set at an accessible price.
The leadership role of the organization
Tanaka often makes public announcements crediting all of the brand's “employees” for Owndays' success. Because employees are the ones who provide the best customer service. Delivering the experience convinces or can be delivered within 20 minutes because of this type of business the service provided by the employees is as important as the quality of the products.
It focuses on the employee experience within the organization (employee experience), and argues that in order to provide good customer service…employees must first be treated well by the organization. When employees feel satisfied they are able to provide good things to customers again.
From a profile perspective he's a straight guy. Anonymity is not as cherished as privacy is revealed as on the official website of the company on the page about the history of the brand the personal link to Tanaka on Facebook is included. A blog post was written on Medium detailing the story of Owndays' journey.
A few years after Tanaka changed the landscape, Owndays set a “new standard” for the eyewear industry in Japan. From the beginning, investors who thought they would surely go bankrupt turned out to be overwhelming success. Get rid of all your debts. And create unprecedented sales
Owndays Go International was first opened in Singapore in 2013 before expanding to several countries such as Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Australia, Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Cambodia and the United Arab Emirates.
Owndays currently has more than 350 branches in Japan and abroad. Arriving today is Tanaka, who has transformed and built Owndays into one of the most exciting eyewear series of our time.
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Photo: Facebook Shoji Tanaka, Owndays
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